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The complaint, which was filed on Feb. 1, has roughly 60 days to be investigated by the Title IX office but can be extended if necessary.

THE BATTALION | THEBATT.COM

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BASKETBALL CURTYCE KNOX BALANCES MOTHERHOOD, BASKETBALL CAREER PAGE 6

POSTER CURTYCE KNOX STATS STUDENT ELECTIONS

VOTING OPENS Texas A&M students will have the chance to decide who will fill the offices of Student Body President, Yell Leaders and many other representative positions after several days of campaigning. Voting for student body elections will open Thursday, Feb. 23 at 9 a.m. and close at noon Friday, Feb. 24. More information on student body elections is available at tamuelection. com/spring-2017 and once voting is open, students can visit vote.tamu.edu to cast their ballot. To find out where the candidates stand on key issues and what they envision for the future of A&M, students are encouraged to check out The Battalion’s 2017 election guide online.

Alexis Will — THE BATTALION

Walton Hall files Title IX complaint

Residents say 4 female dorms, no male dorms on campus is gender discrimination

By Josh McCormack @_joshmccormack

ollowing the Jan. 25 announcement of Walton Hall becoming a co-ed, freshmen-only dorm, current Walton residents are not happy with the change and have filed a Title IX complaint claiming gender discrimination. The complaint, which was filed on Feb. 1, is based on the fact that, starting in the fall of 2017, there will be four all-female dorms on campus in comparison to no all-male housing. The Title IX office has begun its investigation into the case, said Margaret Zapalac, associate vice president for University Risk and Compliance. “Once a civil rights complaint is filed, a review of the information is needed to determine how to proceed,” Zapalac said. “TAMU strives to complete investigations in a timely manner, e.g., approximately 60 days, however this may

vary depending on the severity and extent of the complaint and/or the complexity of the investigation.” Electrical engineering sophomore and Walton Hall Council president Nadir Pozegija said after the announcement, Walton Hall residents began to act quickly, trying to fight for their dorm to remain all-male and open to all years. “We announced [Walton going co-ed on Jan. 25] — Wednesday night. Thursday morning we all just started discussing possible actions we could take,” Pozegija said. “That was an idea ... [to file a Title IX complaint] is one that has been around for a while” The complaint was filed not only to preserve the community Walton residents have built, but also to continue to support all living preferences, Pozegija said. “So the dilemma is not just about Walton, it comes down to as a whole ... for fairness and equality there is no all-male housing left on WALTON ON PG. 5

— Staff Report

Morgan Engel — THE BATTALION

Freshman catcher Hunter Coleman is hitting .444 in the Aggies’ first four games.

CRIME

WARRANT AMNESTY CONTINUES The spring warrant amnesty period for College Station and Brazos County began Feb. 13 and will continue through March 3. Citizens with outstanding warrants can avoid paying a $50 per case warrant fee if the fine is paid in full. Warrant status can be checked at cstx.gov/ warrants if the warrant was issued by the College Station Police Department. During the warrant roundup March 4 through 12, city marshals, police officers, reserve police officers and constables will arrest those with outstanding warrants. — Staff Report

TEXAS A&M FRESHMEN HIT T H E G R O U N D Official designated meditation, R U N N I N G Tyler Snell — THE BATTALION

An all-inclusive worship area in Evans Library is set to open in two to three weeks.

prayer space to come to Evans By Tyler Snell @Tyler_Snell2 Religious and nonreligious students will soon have a prayer and meditation room in Evans Library. The room on the fifth floor overlooks the Annex and Central Campus Garage and is set to open in the next two to three weeks. The room was created after University Libraries administration noticed students creating prayer areas in the library, such as Muslim students worshiping under the stairwell. However, Dean of University Libraries David Carlson said this room will be open to all faiths. “It was mostly driven by student demand in the

sense that we have discovered there were Muslim students, primarily, who created a space of their own in a stairwell in Evans,” Carlson said. “It’s for anybody of any faith as well as people of no faith who simply want to go up there and meditate.” Pixey Mosley, Associate Dean for Administrative and Faculty Services said the room will allow the spaces currently used by students for prayer and meditation to be used to better enhance a student’s experience at the library. “We want to be able to provide these spaces but also utilize all the areas of our library,” Mosley said. “I think students will get great use out of this room and will really help improve the culture of EVANS ON PG. 4

By Heath Clary @Heath_Clary Oftentimes it takes freshmen a little bit of time to adjust to college baseball. After all, they were high schoolers just a year earlier. The routine of college is different, the competition is stiffer and early struggles are seen as simply a cost of doing business. That, however, is not the case for the current crop of Texas A&M fish. In the first four games, the first-year players have stolen the show from their older teammates. Of the eight Aggies hitting over .300 to this point, six are freshman. Jorge Gutierrez has been outstanding, hitting an otherworldly .714 with three home runs while BASEBALL ON PG. 2